Date of Award

2012

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelors

Department

Humanities

First Advisor

Marks, Susan

Keywords

Agape, Christian Meals, Eucharist, Last Supper

Area of Concentration

Religion

Abstract

While many people know of the Last Supper and Eucharist, not many know of the Agape or "love-feast," a popular banquet feast in early Christianity. This thesis argues that the Agape existed as another celebratory meal for Christ-followers at this time. The Agape appeared after the celebration of the Last Supper, but before the establishment of the Eucharist at the Council of Nicaea. Through an analysis of primary texts, no relation appears between the Eucharist and the Agape, or a direct connection from the Agape to the Last Supper. Further, this thesis argues that the popularity of the Agape resulted from the development of associations in Christian communities, following the practice of Greco-Roman pagan associations. So, what does the Agape show us? The Agape illustrates the division in early Christianity. During this period, no over-arching church structure existed and the Agape developed as a means of celebrating amongst Christ-followers. The Agape developed from the general duty of Christ-followers to celebrate together. Acknowledging the existence of the Agape allows us to see the ambiguity and division present in Christian communities at this time.

Rights

This bibliographic record is available under the Creative Commons CC0 public domain dedication. The New College of Florida, as creator of this bibliographic record, has waived all rights to it worldwide under copyright law, including all related and neighboring rights, to the extent allowed by law.

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